


Possibility

by megyal



Category: Naruto
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-22
Updated: 2012-12-22
Packaged: 2017-11-26 05:11:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/646945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/megyal/pseuds/megyal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kakashi and Iruka's superiors find out that they're together, except they're actually not. Based on this prompt: <i>Kakashi helps Iruka out of a tight spot in Konoha. (Unwanted advances? Bullying?)</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	Possibility

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [](http://gryvon.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://gryvon.livejournal.com/)**gryvon** for the 2012 Winter Round at KakaIru Fest. I tried a different Iruka from what I usually write and I hope you like the overall effect. Thanks to the most amazing [](http://txilar.livejournal.com/profile)[](http://txilar.livejournal.com/)**txilar** for the most amazing beta. Any mistakes remaining are my own; please feel free to point them out.

It's always the hair that caused the problems, Iruka mused almost absently as Ryouichi, a tokubetsu jōnin, pawed at him drunkenly. Iruka easily fended him off, blocking Ryouichi's hands from worming under his shirt.

The hair; the damned hair. When he had it caught up in the ponytail, no one spared him a second glance, unless to address him regarding serious issues, like the Academy's curriculum, or the outcome of his last infiltration assignment. However, once he let it down out of that apparently business-like coiffure, it's like he became a different person to other people. Iruka can't figure it out; it's not like he changed his personality or anything like that. He wasn't quite sure his face looked any different; he's inspected his visage with Hair Up and Hair Down in his mirror, and he can't see any overt peculiarity. The length of his hair was always of great interest, he knew that at least. It's much longer than people thought it was, reaching down almost the middle of his back.

"I think people realise your possibility when they see you with your hair down like that," Kotetsu told him one day, voice drowsy as he sprawled out on the old couch in the flat he shared with Izumo. Iruka lived next door and they spent so much time over each other's places that Iruka tended to find more of his cutlery in their sink than in his own kitchen.

"My possibility," Iruka had echoed, flatly. He'd exchanged a glance with Izumo, who'd been sitting at the kotatsu with him. Izumo had shrugged, going back to his paperwork.

"Yeah!" Kotetsu had waved his hands in the air, making aimless shapes. "When the hair's up, it's like, oh yeah, Iruka-sensei, all right, there you are. When it's down, it's like hmm! Iruka- _sensei_! All _right_ , there you _are_."

"That…makes no sense," Izumo had told him, and Iruka had made an annoyed noise of agreement. "It's just that you look so striking with your hair down, Ru. It's ridiculous."

"Come on now," Iruka had scoffed. " _Striking_. Please."

Right now, that striking bit was something to consider. Ryouichi's hand skittered at his waist, and then skimmed down where Iruka's trousers sat low on his hips. Iruka grabbed his wrist and twisted his hand away, glaring at him. Ryouichi hissed in pain, but didn't seem to be deterred at all.

"Hey," Ryouichi said, leaning into Iruka's space. His eyes were wide and slightly unfocused, and his chakra felt oily against Iruka's skin. "Iruka, hey."

"Look," Iruka said, and as soon as he put Ryouichi in his place, he was going to find Izumo and Kotetsu and tell them that he was heading home, damn their faces. "I'm not interested. Go away."

Ryouichi tilted his head as if Iruka was talking in a different language. Considering the pickled stated of his breath, that was probably the case.

"You're so hot," he said, his bushy black eyebrows hunching together. "Never noticed before. Come home with me."

Iruka's rage was towering in his chest and he felt like breaking something…possibly a series of bottles over Ryouichi's head. He was annoyed, because all he wanted to do this evening was get a little tipsy and maybe laugh a lot with his friends. Tomorrow was a free day: no classes, no field-operations and certainly no Missions' Desk. He'd needed this time to relax at this shinobi-run bar called the Green Shade, and Ryouichi's presumption was curdling his enjoyment of it.

Iruka said, "You can't be asking me that when I'm already here with someone, are you?"

Ryouichi went still and pulled back a little; Iruka could see his little drunk brain making some sodden calculations, and felt his chakra slug around nonsensically. If Iruka was here with someone, Ryouichi could probably pull rank on them, chase them off, and get some sensei action all to himself.

"Who are you here with?" he asked, as sly as a fox, but Iruka was already at least three steps ahead of him. He'd pinged on all the sources of chakra and had noted those which were jōnin-level and above from the moment he'd stepped past the doors, a force of habit. The closest jōnin was one of the highest ranked shinobi currently in the bar, and Iruka had it on good authority that this particular jōnin was not averse to male company and attention. Iruka took a deep breath, strode out of Ryouichi's reach and sidled up beside Sharingan no Kakashi.

Kakashi, for his part, simply glanced at Iruka out of the corner of his uncovered eye. He wasn't dressed in his mission-regulation gear, just a black loose shirt with short but wide sleeves and trousers, plus a scarf and eye-patch. Iruka guessed that he had at least four weapons tucked into various pockets and seams, just like Iruka and nearly every other shinobi in here. Kakashi seemed bored but Iruka felt how his chakra had pulled in tight the moment Iruka had stepped close to him, ready to be utilized for a defensive strike. Iruka hesitated for a bare beat, and then leaned right against Kakashi's side as he sat there on the bar-stool.

The entire bar went still, but Iruka kept his gaze fixed on Ryouichi.

"I'm here with Kakashi," he said, turning slightly and hoping his statement sounded more like the frustrated plea that he needed Kakashi to hear. Kakashi's eyebrow twitched. Then, he lifted the arm closest to Iruka and draped it around Iruka's waist. His arm felt light, as if he wasn't allowing the full weight of it to bear down, but Iruka felt the tense strength of it against his back.

The silence in the bar thickened and then low murmurs broke out. Iruka kept staring Ryouichi, who looked between both of them with an expression that looked a lot like growing dismay.

"I…wasn't aware," he said, stumbling over the words. "Apologies, Iruka-sensei. Kakashi-san," he added with a stiff nod that nearly caused him to topple over in his drunken state. He shuffled back and melted into the crowd, which was still rather silent. Iruka cast an exasperated glance at the lot of them, and they all went back to their drinks and conversations, albeit in a muted fashion.

Iruka leaned down to Kakashi's ear, even as Kakashi pulled away his arm.

"I'm very sorry about that," he murmured, and nodded at the bartender who had ambled over. She smiled briefly at him, her gaze flickering over to Kakashi, before she took their empty glasses and refilled them where they could see her doing it.

"Happens a lot?" Kakashi drank like no-one else Iruka had ever seen. He covered his mouth, pulled down his scarf, took a sip of his dark beer and tugged back up the dark material to hide his face, all using one hand and in one swift move. It was interesting to watch and Iruka stared at three quick sips before he actually answered.

"It happens enough," he said with a small smile. Kakashi didn't turn his head, but he regarded Iruka out of the corner of his eye; there was something deeply considering in his expression. Iruka stared back at him, and it felt like a challenge between them. Kakashi shrugged, a quick movement of his shoulders that broke down the strange building tension.

"Well, glad that I could be of help," is all he said and returned to drinking. Iruka glanced around; Kakashi was sitting alone. There were other jōnin in the Green Shade, sitting in dimly-lit booths. Even Guy-sensei was here, poking at someone's chest as he made a point. Iruka eyed Kakashi's profile for a moment, and then hooked the cross-bar of a nearby stool with his foot, dragging it close. Kakashi didn't look at him as Iruka settled in, but his chakra became slightly bristly. Iruka ignored it, and focused on his own drink.

He said nothing; he didn't let his gaze wander over Kakashi's frame. He just sat there and drank; bit by bit, Kakashi's chakra lost that prickly feel.

"I guess we should keep up appearances," Kakashi said about an hour later, when Iruka had nursed his way through about four glasses in an oddly comfortable silence. Iruka turned his head and saw that Kakashi was standing, his hands shoved into the pockets of his trousers. Kakashi inclined his head towards the door.

"I need to go home," he said, quietly. Iruka could hardly hear him over the noise of the bar; the size of the crowd had increased as more shinobi and the braver civilians had wandered in. "So."

Iruka blinked at him.

"If you are _with_ me," Kakashi said, enunciating very carefully, "maybe you and I should leave together. Like I said: keep up appearances."

"You're trying to bed me," Iruka blurted before he can stop himself. Kakashi just _looked_ at him. "Or…you're just really trying to help. Right." He got up, using one hand to flick back the sheaf of his hair which had been draped over one shoulder.

"Who says 'bed me' these days?" Kakashi wondered aloud as they made their way towards the exit, side by side. Guy-sensei yelled something unintelligible as Kakashi strolled by, and Kakashi lifted one hand in a way which either meant he was waving in reply or trying to chase a fly from his face.

"I do," Iruka said and took a deep breath of the fresh late-night air, closing his eyes briefly. He opened them and then turned his head to stare at Kakashi, who was looking back at him with an unreadable expression. "Thanks again for helping me out," he said, quite firmly.

Kakashi nodded. "You're welcome, Sensei." He turned on one heel and strolled away in the night. Iruka watched his retreating back for a long while, simply noting the way he carried himself in that offhand slouch. Iruka wrinkled his nose, and then headed off for his own place. He staggered upstairs and set his chakra traps. He barely managed to strip off his shirt, wash his feet and fall into bed.

It seemed like a few minutes later that he blinked open his eyes to find that it was already morning. Additionally, Izumo and Kotetsu hovered over his bed, peering down at him.

"What the--" Iruka reacted in a wild but highly effective flail, kicking Izumo in the stomach and catching Kotetsu on the chin with a stinging slap. The two of them reared backwards and slumped against the closet doors, screeching curses at him as they rubbed their sore body-parts.

"Oh shut up," Iruka told them, not unkindly. "You've gotten worse on missions. You know not to wake me up like that, anyway."

"We were worried!" Kotetsu rubbed at his jaw and eyed Iruka as he crawled out of bed. "Last night…"

"Last night what?" Iruka ran a hand through his hair, making a face at the tangles he found. He always considered cutting it when faced with the prospect of combing through those knots, but he really did like it long.

"That whole thing with you and Sharingan no Kakashi," Izumo said, very slowly. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Me and _who_?" Iruka asked, incredulous and then his memory filtered back belatedly. "Oh. Right. That."

Izumo threw up his hands. "How can you be so casual? It's _Sharingan no Kakashi_. I don't know if you recall who he is? Badass jōnin? Likes to read porn everywhere? Said to be Hokage material? Seriously, Iruka, how you managed to keep something like this a secret--"

"It's not a secret because it's _nothing_ ," Iruka said, and decided to get back into bed and wrap himself in his blankets. Kotetsu tried to stop him, but this was Iruka's free day, damnit, and he was going to take full advantage of it. After a ferocious but thankfully brief struggle, Iruka was safely cocooned once more, ignoring Kotetsu's glares.

"You don't have to worry," he tried to say very seriously, but the entire effect was ruined by a massive yawn. "Kakashi-san was just helping me out with Ryouichi, that's all."

"It didn't look that way." Kotetsu, normally the most jocular of persons, seemed unusually sombre. "He had his hands all over you. Looked real possessive. Ryouichi swore that he felt a killing intent."

Iruka rolled his eyes. "He did not have his hands all over me. And Ryouichi is an idiot."

"And then when he wanted to leave, he just told you to get up _and you did_." The corners of Izumo's mouth were pulled down in a very unhappy manner. "That’s…just not like you."

Iruka felt fond exasperation at his two friends. "Listen to the words coming out of my mouth: I'm fine. There's nothing between Kakashi-san and I, all right? Can I go back to sleep now?"

"Fine." Kotetsu flounced out of Iruka's bedroom, stomping his way to the front door of the apartment. Izumo started to follow and then turned back to Iruka.

"Iruka, just…."

"Just what?" Iruka snuggled further down into his comfy nest. He blinked at Izumo with exaggerated innocence and Izumo let out a reluctant laugh. Iruka grinned; he had long lashes and Izumo always said that they made him look ridiculously sweet, when nothing was further from the truth.

"Just be careful," Izumo said and stepped out. Iruka pondered this for a totality of eleven seconds, and then went back to sleep.

+-+

Iruka was in the middle of explaining to a disgruntled shinobi why he would rather burn this mission report and scrape the ashes into a cesspit than accept it for filing, when an ANBU materialized right at his elbow.

"Iruka-sensei," the ANBU said. Iruka hoped his surprise was well-hidden as he stood up from his seat and offered a bow. The ANBU bowed in response, a quick graceful movement. "Sensei, Godaime Hokage requests your presence in her office."

"Understood," Iruka replied and motioned to another shinobi on duty to take his place. He walked out of the packed room, keeping his expression as neutral as possible as he exited the room and used a stair which wrapped around the outside of the building. Outside, the day was warm, and he felt sweat bead at the back of his neck. He could sense the ANBU's chakra as they leaped up the branches of the massive tree right beside the tower, the signature muting as the ANBU entered the Hokage's office. Iruka hurried along a wide corridor and took a deep breath before the door of the Hokage's office.

He didn't expect the Council to be inside as well…and Kakashi, standing in front of them with one hand stuck in his pocket. Iruka paused; his gaze went quickly from where the Hokage sat behind her desk, Shizune-san by her side as usual, and council-members seated in comfortable-looking chairs on either side of the table. Iruka, who had many opportunities to courteously disagree with the two elderly shinobi, greeted them with respectful bows.

"Hokage-sama. Honoured Council," he said, knowing that Homura Mitokado-sama and Koharu Utatane-sama each wanted to be addressed before the other. He'd long since saved himself the hassle of their sulky arguments over such a minor issue. "Shizune-san." He stepped inside properly and bowed at Kakashi. "Hatake-san."

"Standing a bit too much on formality, aren't we, Iruka-sensei? Especially now?" Tsunade sounded amused, but there was an odd edge to her tone. Iruka felt Kakashi's chakra ripple around his body and surmised that he was agitated, of all things; one couldn't tell from the lethargic way he was standing, though. Iruka inclined his head in a fashion that was neither a _yes_ nor a _no_ , and the Hokage made a rude noise in the back of her throat.

"Dismissed, Jōnin Hatake," she said. "Wait for our ruling in the Standby Station."

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Kakashi turned on his heel and ambled out, not making eye-contact with Iruka. Puzzled, Iruka turned his head slightly to watch him go. _Ruling_?

"Iruka-sensei," Homura said, and Iruka returned his attention to the issue at hand. There was a tight feeling in the base of his stomach, the way he felt before a difficult mission. "We have received reports of fraternization between yourself and Jōnin Hatake."

Iruka gaped at them; he couldn't help it.

"Fraternization?" he echoed blankly. "Reports?"

"Yes," Koharu said in her aggressive manner. "Are you and Kakashi Hatake in a sexual relationship? There are a myriad of anti-fraternization rules within our shinobi forces, as you well know, Iruka- _sensei_." She gave his title a pointed weight and that was what kicked Iruka's brain back into gear. He straightened his stance even more.

"He's not my direct commanding superior," Iruka said, hoping his tone was not too defiant. "I don't fall within his chain of command, and therefore our…uh, _interactions_ are not against any of the village's policies. Furthermore, as consenting adults, the status of our personal contact is no-one's business but our own."

"Consent is the issue here." Shizune's voice was very soft, but there was an unsettling intensity in her dark eyes as she gazed at Iruka, so much so that he had to fight the urge to look away. "We need to ensure that Jōnin Hatake has not used his rank to exploit or coerce you."

If their expressions hadn't been so serious, Iruka would have burst into incredulous laughter. As it was, he spent quite a few moments just blinking at them.

"Jōnin Hatake-- _Kakashi_ \-- has not used his rank to exploit or coerce me," Iruka said, deliberately choosing to use the same words. "On the contrary, _I_ was the one who approached _him_. We're not even in a relationship, it was just…just last night. He was actually helping me."

Shizune and the Council appeared quite sceptical. Tsunade, for her part, seemed to have a contemplative air.

"Did he tell you to keep your relationship a secret?" Shizune asked, her voice very soft and oddly, very dangerous. Her chakra shimmered violently around her body, almost boiling.

"No, there _is no relationship._ " Iruka felt a small swell of anger at the mixture of disbelief and pity on their faces, and tamped it down quickly. Shizune, in particular, was on some edge right now, and Iruka didn't want to push her over it. "And even if there was, I don't think it would have any impact on discipline and morale in the village. Nor would he compromise any mission because of… _us_ , or be partial towards me for any reason." Iruka nodded, almost to himself. That sounded good, didn't it? That covered nearly all the bases, he thought.

Shizune didn't seem to think so.

"Sharingan no Kakashi is a very powerful shinobi," she said and Iruka realised with a start that she was _worried_ about him. "His influence does not necessarily have to be overt."

Iruka felt his lips part and that tight feeling in the base of his stomach seemed to twist even more; Shizune's countenance was very sad and very determined at the same time. Iruka wondered who had she known in a similar situation…or if she herself had been involved in such a manner.

"Has Kakashi ever manipulated an individual without their consent or knowledge?" he asked, his voice sounding tight to his own ears.

"On missions, certainly. That is just one part of his talent as a shinobi," Tsunade answered. "Never an ally or a colleague as far as current reports indicate." She paused, and then shrugged elaborately. Her chakra, always held pulsing near that jewel in the middle of her forehead, seemed to wriggle just as extravagantly. "But, who knows the true heart of a man?"

Iruka said, as forcefully as he could without seeming too anxious, "I am positive that Hatake Kakashi has not used his Sharingan in any way to manipulate me into a relationship, sexually or otherwise. I repeat, there is no relationship."

"Are you willing to go to Ibiki Morino to confirm the veracity of your stance?" Shizune said, frowning slightly at him. At least her chakra was pulling back, calming down.

Iruka stared directly into her eyes.

"Of course, Shizune-san," he said.

+-+

"So," Ibiki said with a too-wide smile as he sat in a wooden chair across a desk from Iruka. His chakra fluttered towards Iruka with friendly and sly curiosity. There was a sensation of sharpness in it, though, like a cute puppy with treacherous teeth. "Kakashi? Really?"

Iruka huffed, his arms folded over his chest. "Ibiki, this isn't even necessary. You and I both know that."

"Do I?" Ibiki waggled his eyebrows, the scarred skin over his nose and forehead shifting slightly as he did so. "One minute, I hear you're free and single and sleeping your way from corner to corner, and the next, you're hooked by _Kakashi_. Something doesn't look right at all."

"What, a chūnin like me can't pull a jōnin like him?" Iruka stuck his chin forwards belligerently. "And I'm _not_ sleeping from corner to corner, you can't listen to Kotetsu when he's drunk."

Ibiki eyed him. "Don't pull that chūnin crap with me," he said. "I could use your chakra-sensing trick when we're interrogating prisoners."

"It's not a trick," Iruka muttered, dropping his chin to stare at the rough wooden surface of the table. "It just happens, I can't help it. Besides, you know how much I pick up in their chakra, it makes me…uncomfortable."

Ibiki nodded. "Alright. So, let's get the formalities out of the way, shall we?" He opened a folder that had been resting beside his elbow and removed a sheet of paper. "Iruka-sensei, for the record: has Jōnin Hatake inserted his penis inside any of your orifices without your express consent?"

"That is not a question on your list," Iruka said, squinting at him.

"It is _now_."

Iruka sighed. "For the record, and the _fourth time_ , Jōnin Hatake and I are not in a relationship. We have not had sex. He hasn't used his rank as a jōnin to force me to be with him. He has not threatened me in any manner, and I'm sure that he--"

"You're _sure_?" Ibiki tilted his head slightly. "You said that you were not involved with him. How would you know for sure what he will or will not do?"

Iruka pressed his lips tightly together, keeping his gaze steady on Ibiki's. He had not spent so much time around the interrogations' master to have not picked up a trick or two.

"It's an inference, from his current position as a highly-ranked and respected shinobi." Iruka raised his eyebrows. "I _am_ allowed, as a trained shinobi, to arrive at a conclusion based on my training and instinct, right?"

"Or his chakra felt right to you," Ibiki said, and Iruka rolled his eyes. "I mean, come on Iruka, it could be so useful to this division."

"Are you interrogating me, or recruiting me?" Iruka scowled at him, for this was a conversation they'd had too many times. "I'd have to be ranked as tokubetsu jōnin, and I'd have to go on more missions and leave teaching." Iruka shook his head slowly. "I love teaching, Ibiki. I like working with the children."

"But you could use this talent to protect them." Ibiki steepled his fingers and tap them against his nose. "You'd be much more effective. We could teach you to weaponize the skill. We have records from your mother's training." Ibiki seemed almost dreamy for a moment. "Your mother. She could sense a lie in someone's chakra from three thousand paces."

"Sandaime said I was perfectly placed. I teach our children to protect themselves and their village, and I'm _good_ at it." Iruka felt mulish, and then melted a little when Ibiki's lips twisted. "Fine. I'll…consider it. I'm more concerned about Kakashi right now."

"Are you?" Ibiki did that infuriating head-tilt again. "Why?"

"Because I used him to get Ryouichi off my case," Iruka said and then rest his elbows on the surface of the table, putting his face in his hands with a sigh. "If I knew it would come to this, I wouldn't have."

Ibiki made a noncommittal sound. "Why didn't you tell the council that?"

"They think I'm under Kakashi's influence, or whatever." Iruka sighed heavily once more. "So only your report can clear him." He peeked through his fingers. "And you will, right?"

Ibiki shrugged. "I have to get a Yamanaka to root around your head a little…not too much," he said as Iruka made a face. "Just to make sure there's nothing untoward."

Iruka smothered yet another sigh, and resigned himself to an evening of uncomfortable mind-delving.

+-+

Iruka ambled out of Ibiki's domain with a slight headache and directions to Kakashi's apartment. He made his way there, knocked on the door and when Kakashi pulled it open, he said, "I do hope you have some sake," and pushed his way inside.

"Please," Kakashi said, closing the door. "Come right in. Make yourself at home." He turned around and stared at Iruka drinking right from a dark bottle of alcohol, salvaged from some sad and lonely corner in Kakashi's kitchen. "Or maybe I should take that back. You _do_ know that I'm under ANBU surveillance, right?"

"Six of them, right," Iruka gasped as he managed to wrench his mouth away from that of the bottle. Kakashi's chakra pulled back in surprise, and then inched towards Iruka with interest. "I know." He returned to his pilfered bottle and took one more long draught before collapsing onto Kakashi's bed and looking around curiously. "Hmm. You have quite a small apartment. Surprising."

"I don't mean to be rude, but I actually do not care what you think at this point in time," Kakashi said, folding his arms across his chest. He wasn't wearing his uniform, but was sporting a pair of loose drawstring trousers and a handkerchief tied over his nose. Iruka made an apologetic face at him.

"I'm really sorry," he said, nibbling at the inside flesh of his lip. "I really had no idea it would come to this."

Kakashi sighed, and then shrugged.

"I tried to explain but the council won't listen," Iruka said. "At least I've gotten Ibiki on my side. It'll be all right soon. They'll lift that probation in no time."

"Thank you for your reassurances." Kakashi's tone was flat. "Now, I'm sure you have other shinobi to torture with your presence--"

"I want to make it up to you, for all this trouble," Iruka said and set the bottle down on the small side-table. "Is there anything I can do? I can cook very well." He looked at all four corners of the neat yet sterile-looking room in a pointed manner. "I can pay someone to...brighten up this place."

"Or you could pay me in sex," Kakashi said, challenge threaded in his chakra. "But that's coercion by a superior. So you might as well leave. I'll call the ANBU to make sure you're protected from my sway."

Iruka stared up at him, and tilted his head. Kakashi was trying to chase him out with that blunt insolence he'd always heard about but underneath that Iruka had felt... _longing_. That was odd. Iruka leaned back against Kakashi's pillows, gazing up in that pale face. Kakashi did that trick where he stared back without looking right in Iruka's eyes.

Iruka reached up slowly, and unzipped his flak-jacket. A species of controlled tension suffused Kakashi's chakra.

"It's okay," Iruka murmured, and shrugged off his jacket. He pulled off the long-sleeved shirt and the one of chain-mail as well. "I want to. No coercion necessary."

Kakashi's body, that finely tuned killing machine, seemed poised right at the edge of indecision. His chakra felt as if it wasn't sure whether to fight or flee. Iruka unbuttoned his trousers, lifted his hips to pull them off and kicked them off the bed. For the _coup de grâce_ , he reached up and tugged the tie that held his hair up. It tumbled around his shoulders and Iruka gave Kakashi his very best sex-smile, the small innocent one with the hint of filthy promises around the edges.

He knew what he looked like: all that brown skin, and that sultry tumble of hair, combined with the lean lines of his body. It had always driven Mizuki kind of crazy, until it actually _did_. Kakashi was staring at him as if Iruka had one of the Tailed Beasts swirling around the middle of his forehead.

"This is not exactly a good idea, considering the circumstances," he said, not making an overt move towards Iruka but his whole frame angled expectantly.

"Ibiki cleared me. A Yamanaka, too," Iruka told him, knowing that what he said was being picked up by the ANBU nosing around outside, their chakra fluttering in concern. "So considering the circumstances, and the fact that you look like you need some kind of release before we send you back on mission-duty, I'd say this was a brilliant idea. I tend to have those, a lot." He pursed his lips. "You're not the only genius around these parts."

"So we're doing this for the good of the village?" Kakashi finally took a step towards him, removing his own trousers and Iruka grinned.

"Of course. Why are we shinobi, if not to dedicate our bodies to our community?"

Kakashi laughed at that, one scarred knee resting on the top of his bed. "You're…not what I expected. You're a lot more amusing than I thought," he said, looking down at Iruka. He pulled the handkerchief from his face with just a hint of hesitation. Iruka solemnly absorbed the straight reality of his nose, the sharpness of his cheekbones, and the thin line of his lips.

"You look nothing like your father," he declared and Kakashi huffed out an amused laugh.

"Sweet-talk will get you everywhere, sensei," Kakashi said and clambered over him in an easy display of elegant movement, and then settled carefully between Iruka's legs. Iruka wriggled underneath him, trying to get comfortable and allow their cocks to rub together at the same time, but Kakashi seemed more inclined to simply rest his head against Iruka's chest, pale hair tickling everywhere.

"Hmm. Well, this is…not what I was expecting." Iruka placed a hand in Kakashi's hair; it was softer than it looked.

"We'll get to the sweaty parts in a minute," Kakashi murmured. "This is nice. Right?"

"Very nice." Iruka kept petting his head; one of the most dangerous shinobi in the known nations, resting his head on Iruka and breathing in deep and slow. It _was_ nice.

"When I saw you in the bar," Kakashi said and Iruka's hand stilled in his hair. "I thought, ' _is that really Iruka-sensei_?' The hair, you see."

"Yeah," Iruka said, trying not to feel too wry. "I get that a lot."

"Your hair is really nice, I like it. But then you turn around and used me to chase that man away. That was very calculating of you." Kakashi smiled and the movement of his cheek was comforting against Iruka's heartbeat. "I like calculating people."

"Oh," Iruka could say. He hadn't been struck near speechless by a potential lover in quite some time. Kakashi turned his head, resting his chin on Iruka's sternum.

"You sense chakra," he said. There was a faint scar that was near the left side of his lips, crossing both upper and lower in a single line. It twisted as he smiled. "But it's more sensitive than that, right? The Sharingan can see you receiving _something_."

"Feelings," Iruka told him, giving in to temptation and tracing the scar with one finger. Kakashi was heavy but not to the point of crushing him. "It's said to be a bloodline limit from my mother's family. They called it the Listening Eye, but I've never seen records that confirm that it is or isn't a limit. In any case, my mother had the ability to go up to the Telling Eye. _Influence_ people's chakra and their emotions… make them feel what she wanted them to feel."

"Interesting," Kakashi said and Iruka tensed a little, waiting for the inevitable comment of _so why aren't you jōnin-level now_. Instead, Kakashi shifted up, forearms braced on either side of Iruka's head, gazing down at Iruka's face. Slowly, he leaned down and Iruka parted his lips in anticipation of the kiss.

It was soft, and more tentative than Iruka thought it would have been, considering how naked they both were. Kakashi's chakra warmed around them, knitting with his own. The very air infused with something that Iruka knew and yet didn't know how to identify. Kakashi's hips rocked in a rather experimental fashion. Iruka gasped at the hard hot slide of their cocks together, a quick inhale that pulled in more of Kakashi's breath and chakra into his chest. Iruka's heart felt heavy and light and…

…like possibility.

_fin_

_Epilogues:_

"I must offer you my apologies, Iruka-sensei and to Kakashi-san as well," Shizune said, her face calm but her chakra tucked in close with mortification. She faced Iruka squarely in the hallway that connected the Academy to the Konoha Library, shoulders straight and tense. "I may have been overzealous in my--"

"Thank you for looking out for me," Iruka said, and meant it. He shifted the satchel he had in his arms and offered her a hesitant smile. "I feel reassured that persons of higher rank will think twice before using their position against those they are supposed to lead."

Shizune didn't answer, but she tilted up her chin and nodded, before striding on to the rest of the day.

+

Iruka opened the door to the Jōnin Standby Station and found a handful of jōnin staring at him. Anko, Genma, Guy-sensei, Raidō and Kakashi were seated around a small table, cards held close to their chests.

"Oh," Anko said with a toothy smile. "Kakashi, your boyfriend is here."

"He's not my boyfriend," Kakashi and Iruka said at the same time, and eyebrows lifted in wonder. Kakashi shifted as if he was about to get up, but Iruka shook his head slightly. Kakashi returned a shrug just as minute, and returned his attention to his cards.

"Guy-sensei, the Hokage requests your presence in her office," he said. Guy-sensei bounded up out of his chair, made some complicated hand movements and emitted a short but effusive speech that Iruka had long learned to tune out.

"Iruka-sensei," Guy-sensei said as he walked alongside Iruka on the winding staircase. "You and Kakashi are not involved? I thought from the way he smiles when he speaks of you, that you were his most precious person!"

Guy-sensei had the shyest chakra Iruka had ever felt on a person. It was powerful, no doubt, almost as impressive as Kakashi's, but it moved in a manner that was quite sweetly timid. This interested Iruka, deeply. Kakashi's chakra felt like that, too: potent, arousingly capable, but so very careful around Iruka.

He stopped and looked at Guy-sensei, who stopped walking as well, gazing back at him with beetle-black eyes.

"We…haven't spoken about that," Iruka admitted and Guy's chakra swirled about in muted melodrama. "I mean, it's really fun being with him, we enjoy each other's company a lot."

Not to mention each other's bodies. Finely honed, they both had the kind of stamina in bed that Iruka was greedy for, allowing him to ride Kakashi slowly for long stretches at a time. That was one of Iruka's favourite positions; Kakashi's thick cock sliding in a silky length which pressed against Iruka's insides with throbbing heat. Kakashi's hands would roam restlessly, from gripping Iruka's hips to stroking his back, to curling his fingers around Iruka's cock and jerking until Iruka shuddered and arched, clenching around Kakashi.

"Besides," Iruka said now, resuming his trek to the Hokage's office, albeit a bit more slowly this time. "How do you know when he's smiling in a genuine fashion?"

Guy-sensei shrugged, and his chakra shrugged with him. "I have known him for a long time. His smile is true when he mentions your name."

Iruka stopped, and stared at Guy-sensei. "True?"

Guy-sensei and his shy chakra nodded in front of the Hokage's office. "True." He squared his shoulders and then leaped inside with a burst of green glittering flame, eliciting annoyed shrieks from the Hokage.

+

Naruto came home from a mission and foraged his way through the contents of Iruka's fridge. When he'd eaten all of Iruka's supplies for a month, he stretched out on the floor beside the kotatsu and groaned in gratitude.

"Don't throw up on my floor," Iruka said, looking over his lesson plans for the next class.

"Nuuuu," Naruto said and tried to roll over. He gave up after a few attempts. "Would _never_."

"Good to hear."

"Are you and Kaka-sensei…like, _boyfriends_?" Naruto asked, and Iruka's pen jabbed through where he had been making notes. "I've heard that."

"From who?" Iruka tried to salvage the paper; he really didn't want to write the whole thing over.

"Well…not anyone directly. But Yamato-taichou said something kind of funny, not haha-funny, more like _huh_ -funny, and then Kiba, but Kiba's got a big mouth anyway and there's been, you know, I hear stuff at Ichiraku's--"

"What did Yamato-san say?" Iruka asked, mainly because he wasn't quite sure how to answer Naruto's question. He did a lot of things with Kakashi; they ate together, they had long rambling discussions about odd things like the validity of sporks as a weapon and why one sandal always seemed to fit better than the other and the quality of wrappings from a certain store and why swans were so damned territorial. They also had arguments, the most recent a very large quarrel over Naruto because Iruka still held a tiny grudge against Kakashi for that whole exam thing. He was crazy over Kakashi's body because…well, _Kakashi_ , and he liked hearing Kakashi's low voice. Kakashi's inflexible standards of neatness drove him up the wall and once he caught Kakashi scrubbing the counter of his tiny kitchen, muttering darkly underneath his breath.

It was all of that and more, and how Kakashi's chakra always curved towards him when they slept together.

"Umm." Naruto tilted his head back and forth. "Something about how he wanted Kaka-sensei to go somewhere with him and then he's like, 'Oh! He told me about that thing he had with Iruka-sensei', and that was weird enough for me. Just… the way he said it, you know?"

Iruka nodded. "I know. To answer your question, we're together, but it's not serious."

Naruto's chakra, brassy nearly all the time, was thoughtfully muted. "And he's seen you with your hair down, right?"

Iruka simply had to laugh at that one.

+

"Look, we may or may not kill you," the head kidnapper said, his voice shaking and Iruka sighed, working stealthily on his bonds. He could feel the chakra-signatures of about six individuals, all of them overexcited and edgy. He sent out a sneaky wisp of his own chakra, and was pleased to find that the training he took with Ibiki was paying off. The kidnappers calmed down significantly; that was good. He really didn't want them skewering him through sheer jumpiness. Apparently, the thought of the Copynin bearing down on them for kidnapping his lover was a nerve-wracking one.

"Right," the leader said in a more level tone. "Sharingan no Kakashi will come for you, we do an exchange for the jutsu he knows and then you can go. Maybe."

"What makes you think he'll come for me?" Iruka asked and then flew up off the ground in a flurry of movement. Allowing himself to be kidnapped by these amateurs had been galling, but his team had needed to know the location of their base. He disabled four of them easily, but the last two were a bit more difficult. Still, he manage to disarm them and tie them up, looking up as the door was shoved open.

Iruka stared as, instead of someone from his team, Kakashi poked his head around the door-jamb.

"Hello, Kakashi-san," he said, smiling a little. "What are you doing here?"

"Rescuing you." Kakashi cast an assessing gaze on the unconscious kidnappers. "I see you've done an excellent job of rescuing yourself." He clenched one gloved fist and released it quickly. Iruka stared at his now-loose fingers and then looked up in Kakashi's face once more.

"If I knew you were coming, I would have waited. Given you a chance to shine." Iruka continued to smile, but Kakashi didn't seem amused at all. As a matter of fact, he seemed annoyed and angry. Even when they met up with the rest of Iruka's team and were heading home, Kakashi gave off such a dark aura that Iruka's team-mates kept glancing back at them worriedly.

Iruka landed lightly on the ground and waved on the rest of his team. He folded his arms, feeling the displeasure in Kakashi's chakra before the man himself descended as well.

"I'm not angry at you," Kakashi said before Iruka could open his mouth. "I'm not. I know you feel it in my chakra, but it's not you."

"Then what are you angry at?" Iruka asked, still wary and Kakashi shrugged.

"As long as you're with me, you're in danger," Kakashi said and then immediately appeared conflicted, as if he wanted to take the statement back, and leave it laying there between them at the same time.

"I'm with you?" Iruka raised his eyebrows and Kakashi glanced away.

"You know what I mean."

"I'm with you," Iruka said, firmly and Kakashi looked up, his eye wide. "Right? I'm with you. Danger and all. Comes with the territory." _My possibility_ , Iruka thought and grinned.

Kakashi looked at him, and under his mask, his mouth shifted into an answering smile.


End file.
